Carriers

Sprint’s new tablet-exclusive unlimited plan degrades your video, music and gaming streams

I don't trust “unlimited” wireless plans because they're all but unlimited and often come with a bunch of caveats one needs to consider carefully. The latest example: Sprint's newly announced data plan for tablets which promises unlimited 4G LTE data in exchange for $20 per month. So far so good, but the devil—as always—is in the detail.

If you take a closer look at the fine print, you soon realize that the plan limits video streaming to DVD-like 480p resolution, music streaming quality to 500kbps and your online gaming streams to up to 2Mbps.

Did China Unicom just hint at Deep Blue iPhone 7?

Apple's carrier partner China Unicom may have just hinted subtly that the next iPhone could come in an all-new Deep Blue colorway, as first suggested two months ago by the Japanese blog Mac Otakara.

According to Dutch blog TechTastic.nl, China Unicom on its Facebook page posted an image featuring an iPhone 7-like dual lens camera superimposed on a huge “7” surrounded by four squares that allude to existing Space Gray, Gold and Rose Gold colors, plus the rumored Deep Blue colorway.

Soon after, the carrier removed its post from Facebook.

Korea’s watchdog is investigating Apple for possible anti-competitive practices

Reuters reports that Apple is currently under fire in South Korea as the country's antitrust regulator launches an investigation into “some matters”, without disclosing further details. Jeong Jae-chan, the head of the anti-competition body, said during a parliamentary hearing Tuesday that the agency was taking a closer look at Apple's business practices in the country.

According to local media, the agency was reviewing details of Apple's contracts with South Korean wireless carriers earlier this month.

Apple working to form ‘strategic partnerships’ with Indian carriers ahead of 4G expansion

Shortly after his pre-dawn spiritual experience at the Shree Siddhivinayak Temple at Prabhadevi in Mumbai, Apple CEO Tim Cook met the country's top wireless carriers in an effort to strike a "strategic partnership” ahead of a wide-scale LTE expansion in the country.

India, home to population of 1.25 billion people, is about to witness the advent of high-speed fourth-generation wireless networks, a move that Apple sees as the opportunity to expand the market for iPhones, as reported today by The Economic Times of India.

How to disable cellular data for specific iPhone apps

Cellular data usage on iPhone

Many carriers impose caps on your cellular data. For this reason, iOS includes a feature that lets you limit what apps are allowed to access the internet using cellular data. This is particularly useful for limiting those data-hungry apps from causing you unwanted cellular bill overages each month.

In this tutorial, we'll be showing you how you can disable cellular data for specific apps on your iPhone or iPad.

AT&T carrier update for iOS 9.3 allows for Wi-Fi Calling outside the US

In a text message sent today to its eligible customers, AT&T announced that those who have activated the Wi-Fi Calling feature on their iPhone can now make and receive phone calls from and to the US at no charge when traveling internationally, assuming they have first updated to iOS 9.3 and installed the newly available carrier update.

This marks a small yet important change to how users can benefit from Wi-Fi Calling. Up until now, Wi-Fi calling for AT&T customers restricted them to using the service only from the U.S., Puerto Rico, or U.S. Virgin Islands. But now, it is opened to any country (except for a few exceptions), meaning an AT&T Wi-Fi Calling user can make calls to the US, or receive calls from the US anywhere in the world as long as there is a Wi-Fi connection.

How to see how much data your iPhone apps are using

Cellular data used by each app and system service on iPhone

With the imposing data caps cellular carriers like to put on their users, it's important to be able to keep track of your data, so you don't hit expensive data overages each month.

In this tutorial, we'll walk you through the steps to find out how much mobile data your iPhone apps and services are using individually.

AT&T unveils 5G roadmap, says it’ll be 10-100 times faster than 4G

AT&T on Friday issued a press release detailing its 5G network roadmap. The carrier says it is partnering with Ericsson and Intel to work on 5G solutions in its labs starting in Q2 of this year, and it hopes to be ready for outdoor tests and trials by early summer.

5G speeds are expected to be 10-100 times faster than current 4G LTE connections. AT&T says customers will see speeds measured in gigabits per second, not megabits. For reference, at one gigabit per second, you can download a TV show in less than 3 seconds.

Move to Android: EU carriers pushing Apple to provide an app to help people leave iOS ecosystem

Due to complaints by European mobile operators, Apple is reportedly under pressure to provide software that would permit iPhone owners to easily switch to Android, The Telegraph reported yesterday.

Carriers contend that Apple's decision to only provide the 'Move to iOS' app but not a similar tool to shift user data over to an Android device is limiting competition while weakening their hand in negotiations with Apple over contractual terms.

AT&T to stop offering two-year phone contracts next month

AT&T plans to stop offering two-year phone contracts next month, reports Engadget. The outlet on Wednesday published an internal document that says the carrier will launch a "pricing simplification effort" on January 8 that will effectively get rid of contracts.

According to the document, starting on the 8th, AT&T Next and full-retail will become the only purchase options for smartphones. Folks looking to buy a flip, or "basic," phone from the carrier will also have to choose between paying full-retail or an installment plan.

AT&T to increase price of grandfathered unlimited data plans in February

AT&T is going to announce a price hike for its grandfathered unlimited data plans early next year, reports CNBC. The outlet announced the news on Twitter this afternoon, saying it has learned that the carrier plans to increase the price from $30 to $35 in February.

The move is unsurprising, given that Verizon announced earlier this year that it'd be raising the price of its own grandfathered unlimited plans, and the two carriers tend to follow each others leads. AT&T's price bump is significantly less though, at just $5 versus $20.